, 1887-08-18
THE WHlPPERS In.
THE ARDUoUS DUTIES OF THE ENG
LISH PARLIAMENTARY "WHIPS."

How the Political Hounds Arc Called
Together in Great BritaIn's Legislative
Hals-The Serious Responsibilities OF
the Party "whip."
Political parties were declared by Pulte-
ney, a hundred years ago, to resemble
snakes, in the fact that their heads were
moved forward by their tails. 1t might
be invidious, perhaps, at the present day
to discuss the anatomy of our parties in
order to find out where the motive power
chiefly lies; but there can at least be little
doub that a party without a whip, or a
couple of whips, would stand a very poor
chance indeed on the floor of the house of
The first lord of the treasury
may be absent through indisposition,"
or the chancellor of the exchequer may
stay way from some other reason, and
there are plenty of occupants of the treas
ury bench to take their place for a night.
But supposing that both whips should be
incapacitated, who would be their substi-
tutes? No other members know half so
much about the party organization as
they do. They are indispensable-and
they are aware of the fact.
1t is quite ten years since, before the
Liberals had been so fatally split up as
they are at present, that Sir Wilfrid Law
son amused his constituents by telling
them that it was the custom of the whip
pers in of parliament to summon their po-
Gtical hounds together by means of a
polite little circular, which earnestly re-
quested" the presence Of each individual
member who might be counted on to vote
straight. If there was no dash under the
word earnestly it was safe to infer,
said the honorable member for Carlisle,
that the business to which reference was
made might or might not come on that
evening. One dash under the word meant
that the member summoned ought to
come. Two dashes meant that he certain
1y should come. Three undertaking strokes
meant that he must come. And if the
whip had been lavish enough to waste no
fewer than four dashes on the earnestly"
the plain significance of that was that If
the member chose to stay away he would
do so at his peril.
1t is open to question whether the use
of these marks, supposed to be so dear to
the feminine mind, beneath the summon
ing words in whips circulars have been
productive of good or harm. One obvi-
GUS result has been to cause legislators to
have very little respect for an earnest re
quest without the accompanying symbols
of peremptoriness. If u whip were to
be asked what possible peril" could
be involved in n member disobeying
a party command, and staying at home
when II great division was pending, he
woul no o reply that the peril arose
from the members own constituents.
But, for all that, members who are casual
in the parliamentary attendance or con-
firmed absentees do unquestionablyEo in
terror of the circumstances of the party
fuglemen, apart altogether from a con-
sideration of the effect of non-voting on
the safety of their seats.
Long custom has made the rule of the
whip "A prescriptive one which nobody
would dispute, except when convictions
forced n man to quit his party ranks and
vote for once with the opposite hosts. 1t
is a rule which is exercised with great
tact and judgment, and which is not re-
sented. Now and then, no doubt, members
break away from the whips; occasionally
n statesman, like Mr.. Disraeli in his free
lance days, refers bitterly to the party or
ganization as being too severe, and dubs
the necessity of obeying the whips "sla-
very" As a general rule, however, it is
recognized that a party would be all at
sea without these officials, who work so
silently, and whose names are not marked
out for the fame which awaits the political
leaders on either side.
The whip has n hard fate. He leads a
sCandalously irregular life, as far as late
hours are concerned. He is expected to
rise with the lark, although he only goes
" bth Will lllt reporters, anu Wien the
last light is being e~Xtinguished in the
house Of Members of his party
who are in trouble of any sort come to
him and consult him as if he were a father
COntessOr. He is supposed to have a kind
Of intultlyc acquaintance with the feeling
of the party, " and If he misleads the lead
ers in this respect he is made to repent the
blunder in parliamentary sackclOth. I'm
der all possible irritations he is expected
To htE aInaa 80 haNvA- - rnaI @r "a
word ready for everybody, and to smile
like an angel, even if kept up by an all
night sitting and racked with toothache.
Enquire within upon everything con-
nected with the game of politics" ought
to be inscribed in letters of gold round a
whips coat collar.
Now, what is the guerdon for all this
display of civic virtue? The virtue in
this case, rs in most cases, is its own re-
ward, and the whip gets no pecuniary So
latium whatever. He takes his salary in
the esteem of his brother members, and
in the consciousness that he is playing an
important part in the political arena. No
sOoner are the doors of the house thrown
wide, and the division bell sounded, than
he is to be seen making his way rapidly
to the front benches, there to receive in
structions as TO which lobby his party is
to go into, and other important matters.
He is expected to have some mesmeric
influence over members, SO as to keep n
house, More han that, when there is
danger Of the cloture being needed, he has
to keep such n house as was never dreamed
of in the good old fashioned days, for he
Is responsible for having no fewer than
200 supporters in attendance, in the
library, smoking ROOM, dining room or
lobby, ready to ''pounce" when Mr.. Smith
gives the word London Telegraph.